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Background: At the beginning of the 21st century, international adoptions of children with cleft lip and/or palate increased dramatically in Sweden. Many children arrived partially or totally unoperated, despite being at an age when palatoplasty has usually been performed. To date, the speech development of internationally adopted (IA) children has been described up to age 7-8 years, but later development remains unstudied. Aims: To investigate speech development between ages 5 and 10 years in children born with cleft lip and palate (CLP) adopted from China and to compare them with non-adopted (NA) children with CLP. A secondary aim was to compare the frequencies of secondary palatal surgery and number of visits to a speech and language pathologist (SLP) between the groups. Methods & Procedures: In a longitudinal study, 23 IA children from China were included and matched with 23 NA children born in Sweden. Experienced SLPs blindly reassessed audio recordings from routine follow-ups at ages 5 and 10 years. Velopharyngeal function (VPF) was assessed with the composite score for velopharyngeal competence (VPC-Sum) for single words and rated on a three-point scale (VPC-Rate) in sentence repetition. Target sounds in words and sentences were phonetically transcribed. Per cent correct consonants (PCC) were calculated at word and sentence levels. For in-depth analyses, articulation errors were divided into cleft speech characteristics (CSCs), developmental speech characteristics (DSCs) and s-errors. Information on secondary palatal surgery and number of visits to an SLP was collected. Outcomes & Results: VPF differed significantly between the groups at both ages when assessed with VPC-Sum, but not with VPC-Rate. Regardless of the method for assessing VPF, a similar proportion in both groups had incompetent VPF but fewer IA than NA children had competent VPF at both ages. IA children had lower PCC at both ages at both word and sentence levels. More IA children had CSCs, DSCs and s-errors at age 5 years, and CSCs and s-errors at age 10. The development of PCC was significant in both groups between ages 5 and 10 years. The proportion of children receiving secondary palatal surgery did not differ significantly between the groups, nor did number of SLP visits. Conclusions & Implications: CSCs were more persistent in IA children than in NA children at age 10 years. Interventions should target both cleft and DSCs, be comprehensive and continue past the pre-school years.

Objective: To identify factors of oral health important for the final outcome, after secondary alveolar bone grafting in patients born with unilateral cleft lip and palate and compare occlusal radiographs with cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) in assessment of alveolar bone height. Design: Observational follow-up study. Setting: Cleft Lip and Palate Team, Craniofacial Center, Uppsala University Hospital, Sweden. Patients: 40 nonsyndromic, Caucasian patients with unilateral complete cleft lip and palate. Interventions: Clinical examination, CBCT, and occlusal radiographs. Main Outcome Measurements: Alveolar bone height was evaluated according to Bergland index at a 20-year follow-up. Results: The alveolar bone height in the cleft area was significantly reduced compared to a previously reported 10-year follow-up in the same cohort by total (P = .045) and by subgroup with dental restoration (P = .0078). This was positively correlated with the gingival bleeding index (GBI) (r = 0.51, P = .0008) and presence of dental restorations in the cleft area (r = 0.45, P = .0170). There was no difference in the Bergland index generated from scoring the alveolar bone height on occlusal radiographs as with the equivalent index on CBCT. Conclusion: Patients rehabilitated with complex dental restoration seems to be at higher risk for progression of bone loss in the cleft area. Supportive periodontal therapy should be implemented after complex dental restorations in cleft patients. Conventional occlusal radiographs provide an adequate image for evaluating postoperative bone height in clinical follow-up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ObjectiveTo determine in individuals with unilateral cleft lip and palate the correlation between initial cleft size and dental anomalies, and the outcome of alveolar bone grafting. MethodsA total of 67 consecutive patients with non-syndromic unilateral complete cleft lip and palate (UCLP) were included from the cleft lip and palate-craniofacial center, Uppsala University Hospital, Sweden. All patients were operated by the same surgeon and treated according to the Uppsala protocol entailing: lip plasty at 3 months, soft palate closure at 6 months, closure of the residual cleft in the hard palate at 2 years of age, and secondary alveolar bone grafting (SABG) prior to the eruption of the permanent canine. Cleft size was measured on dental casts obtained at the time of primary lip plasty. Dental anomalies were registered on radiographs and dental casts obtained before bone grafting. Alveolar bone height was evaluated with the Modified Bergland Index (mBI) at 1 and 10-year follow-up. ResultsAnterior cleft width correlated positively with enamel hypoplasia and rotation of the central incisor adjacent to the cleft. There was, however, no correlation between initial cleft width and alveolar bone height at either 1 or 10 years follow-up. ConclusionsWider clefts did not seem to have an impact on the success of secondary alveolar bone grafting but appeared to be associated with a higher degree of some dental anomalies. This finding may have implications for patient counseling and treatment planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To evaluate the importance of dental status for long-term outcome after alveolar bone grafting in patients with unilateral cleft lip and palate. Design: Retrospective longitudinal study. Setting: Cleft lip and palate-craniofacial center, Uppsala University Hospital, Sweden. Patients: A total of 67 consecutive patients with unilateral complete cleft lip and palate. Interventions: Secondary alveolar bone grafting, prior to the eruption of the permanent canine, was performed at the average age of 10.0 years (range, 8.5 to 12.0 years). Main Outcome Measures: Alveolar bone height was evaluated with the modified Bergland index at 1 and 10 years after surgery. Results: Of the patients, 97% had modified Bergland index grade I and the remaining 3% had modified Bergland index grade II at 1 year after surgery. At 10 years' follow-up, 43% showed modified Bergland index grade I; 55%, modified Bergland index grade II; and 2% (one patient), modified Bergland index grade III. The degree of dental anomalies in the cleft area, such as enamel hypoplasia, incisor rotation, incisor inclination, canine inclination, and oral hygiene registered preoperatively, all correlated negatively to the modified Bergland index at 10 years after surgery. Enamel hypoplasia (p = 0.70195, P < .0001), followed by canine inclination (p = 0.55429, P < .0001), showed the strongest correlation to reduced bone height in the cleft area. Conclusions: In patients with unilateral cleft lip and palate, excellent results from secondary alveolar bone grafting in terms of bone height in the alveolar cleft tend to decrease with time. This seems to be correlated with factors that might to some extent be treated preoperatively through adequate planning and execution of the orthodontic treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]